Poultry keeping facilities are typically used for keeping broiler breeders. In this form of poultry farming, the poultry are kept primarily in barns. For that purpose, the poultry keeping facility comprises a nest box for egg laying, which can be arranged in the middle, for example. There are also one or more raised levels which form the first colony surface. These raised levels have a perforated floor area through which the animals' droppings can fall. The floor areas may, for example, be plates having numerous openings. Grids, grates, and the like may also be used here. A suitable facility for removing the droppings may be provided underneath the first floor area, for example, in the form of a droppings belt. Alternatively, some other form of manure removal may be provided, for example one that is manually operated by a person.
In addition to this first floor area, a second floor area forming a second colony surface is provided. This second floor area is typically the barn floor and is designed to receive litter. For that reason, droppings cannot fall through the second floor area, which is used instead to allow the poultry to scratch and peck, behavior that is typical of this species of animal.
A form of poultry keeping which allows species-specific behavior and which prevents species-atypical social behavior among the poultry being kept is made possible, in essence, by the areas thus provided. However, there is a need for further improvement of this form of poultry keeping, one which allows enhanced, species-typical keeping without adversely affecting the efficiency of poultry keeping to any decisive extent.
The object of the disclosure is to provide a poultry keeping facility that allows enhanced, species-specific poultry keeping in accordance with commercial requirements.
This object is achieved, according to the present disclosure, with a poultry keeping facility of the kind initially described, which is developed by providing a perch facility having at least one perching rod arranged at a height above the first or second floor area, said perching rod being movable relative to the first or second floor area, wherein the perching rod is movable from a first position to a second position in which the perch facility covers a smaller area of the first or second floor area than in the first position.